METHOD FOR TEACHING AND/OR OPERATING A LAMINATING METHOD AND/OR A LAMINATING DEVICE, METHOD FOR LAMINATING A FILM ELEMENT, METHOD FOR INSTALLING AND RETROFITTING A LAMINATING METHOD AND/OR A LAMINATING DEVICE FOR LAMINATING A FILM ELEMENT, DEVICE FOR LAMINATING A FILM ELEMENT, AND TEACHING STATION AND FILM ELEMENT

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method for teaching and/or operating a laminating method and/or laminating device for laminating a film element on a substrate part, in which designated working positions, designated intermediate positions and/or designated end positions into which grippers for gripping the film element are subsequently moved to laminate the film element, are determined and taught by with the aid of CAD data of the substrate part and/or the film element.

Claims

1. A method for at least one of teaching a laminating method for laminating a film element on a carrier part and operating a laminating device for laminating the film element on the carrier part, the method comprising the steps of: determining and teaching at least one of in which designated working positions, designated intermediate positions and designated end positions to laminate the film using at least one of CAD data of the carrier part and the film element; and determining and teaching which grippers are configured for gripping the film element and later lamination of the film element.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the CAD data comprises at least one data record relating to at least one of a shape and a contour, and wherein at least one of the shape and the contour comprise a development of a surface of the carrier part to be laminated.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of determining and teaching the at least one of the designated working positions, the designated intermediate positions and the designated end positions depending on a shape on an outer contour or an edge contour of the film element.

4. A method for teaching a laminating process and for operating a laminating device for laminating a film element on a carrier part, comprising the steps of teaching by moans of individual special coordinates at least one of designated working positions, designated intermediate positions, designated end positions, and grippers configured for gripping the film element and later for laminating the film element.

5. A method for at least one of teaching a laminating process for laminating a film element on a carrier part and operating a laminating device for laminating the film element on the carrier part, the method comprising the steps of: teaching in which at least one of designated working positions, designated intermediate positions and designated end positions to laminate the film element on the carrier part by manual actuating of grippers; and teaching which grippers are configured for gripping the film element and later for laminating the film element on the carrier part by manual actuating of grippers.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the grippers are configured to be guided to predetermined spatial coordinates and placed manually at the spatial coordinates.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be guided at least partially individually or in combination into at least one of designated working positions, designated intermediate positions, designated end positions, to enable teaching of designated working positions.

8. The method according to claim 1 wherein the grippers are configured to be used for scoring or retrofitting at least one of the laminating method, the laminating device and to be guided at least partially individually or in combination at least one of along designated working positions into designated intermediate positions, and into designated end positions, in order to enable the teaching of designated working positions.

9. that the method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be moved at least partly individually or in combination into each designated working position.

10. that the method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be at least partially guided into designated working positions in a motor-driven manner by means of a manually operated control device.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein grippers are configured to be guided without film at least partially individually or combined into respectively designated working positions.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be guided at least partially individually or in combination into designated working positions so as to enable the teaching of designated working positions before gripping the lamination of the film element to be cashed.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be at least partially guided individually or in combination into designated working positions to enable the teaching of designated working positions of the grippers being put into operation before at least one of the lamination method and a laminating device.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be guided at least partially individually or in combination into designated working positions to enable instructing a control device configured for controlling at least one of the laminating process and the laminating device configured for controlling grippers with regard to designated working positions.

15. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be guided at least partially individually or in combination up to at least one of a sealing device of a vacuum room up to 20 mm or up to 15 mm to the sealing device, and up to 5 mm or less to a sealing device of a vacuum room and another component of a laminating tool to enable the teaching of designated working positions.

16. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be guided at least partially individually or in combination up to at least one of up to 20 mm, up to 15 mm and up to 5 mm or less to at least one of a cutting device of a laminating room and another component of a laminating tool, to enable the teaching of designated working positions.

17. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be at least partially guided individually or in combination from predefined starting positions into at least one of designated working positions, designated intermediate positions, and designated end positions.

18. The method according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of, for teaching at least one of designated working position, designated intermediate positions and designated end positions, reading at least one of data and 3D data of a workpiece into a control device configured for controlling at least one of a laminating device and the grippers configured for gripping the film element.

19. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be at least partially guided individually or in combination into at least one of designated working positions, designated intermediate positions and designated end positions as a function of a contour of a carrier part.

20. The method according to claim 1, wherein the grippers are configured to be at least partially guided individually or in combination, depending on a movement of a carrier part, into at least one of designated working positions, designated intermediate positions and designated end positions; and wherein at least one of the designated working positions, designated intermediate positions and designated end positions are offset.

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Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0106] Further advantages features and details of the various embodiments of this disclosure will become apparent from the ensuing description of a preferred exemplary embodiment and with the aid of the drawings. The features and combinations of features recited below in the description, as well as the features and feature combination shown after that in the drawing description or in the drawings alone, may be used not only in the particular combination recited, but also in other combinations on their own, with departing from the scope of the disclosure.

[0107] The drawing shows:

[0108] FIG. 1 depicts schematically a view of a device for laminating a film element on a carrier part with a plurality of grippers;

[0109] FIG. 2 depicts a schematic of a supervision of a teaching station with a laminating room and with a large number of grippers;

[0110] FIG. 3 depicts a schematic of a top view of a gripper of the one shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 device or teaching station;

[0111] FIG. 4 depicts a schematic of a side view of the gripper shown in FIG. 3; and

[0112] FIG. 5 depicts a schematic of a first conceivable process sequence for teaching designed working position on a laminating device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0113] As used throughout the present disclosure, unless specifically stated otherwise, the term “or” encompasses all possible combinations, except where infeasible. For example, the expression “A or B” shall mean A alone, B alone, or A and B together. If it is stated that a component includes “A, B, or C”, then, unless specifically stated otherwise or infeasible, the component may include A, or B, or C, or A and B, or A and C, or B and C, or A and B and C. Expressions such as “at least one of” do not necessarily modify an entirety of the following list and do not necessarily modify each member of the list, such that “at least one of “A, B, and C” would be understood as including only one of A, only one of B, only one of C, or any combination of A, B, and C.

[0114] As depicted in FIG. 1, a first possible exemplary embodiment of a device 1 for laminating a film element 2 is shown.

[0115] The device 1 comprises a frame part 3 with a plurality of motor-driven grippers 4. Alternatively, the motor-driven grippers 4 can also be held independently of a common frame part 3 on the device 1.

[0116] The device 1 is further characterized by a laminating tool 5 with a lower tool 6 and with an upper tool 7.

[0117] The lamination tool 5 has a lamination room 8, in which a lamination process or a lamination process takes place.

[0118] The frame part 3 and thus also the grippers 4 are mounted height-adjustable in a frame 11 of the device 1 by means of a travel mechanism 10, so that the entire frame part 3 is mounted on the frame 11 in a height-adjustable manner along a vertical displacement axis 12 of the device 1.

[0119] Below the frame part 3 on a bottom part 13 of the frame 11, the lower tool 6 is placed, the lower tool 6 comprising one or more molded shell parts 14, which in turn are arranged on a base 15 of the bottom part 13.

[0120] The upper tool 7 comprises a carrier part receptacle 16, by means of which one or more carrier parts 17 to be laminated can be held on the upper tool 7. The upper tool 7 also has a robot device 20 with a multi-axially movable manipulator 21, to which the carrier part receptacle 16 is fastened. The carrier part receptacle 16 can be brought into the laminating room 8 by means of the multi-axially movable manipulator 21. In particular, the carrier part receptacle 16 can be moved multidimensionally within the laminating room 8, in particular also adjustable in height.

[0121] In addition, the device 1 also has a feed and/or insertion device 23, by means of which one or more film elements 2 can be introduced into the frame part 3, in such a way that the film element 2 can be immediately inserted into the open gripper 4.

[0122] The feeding and/or inserting device 23 has a feeding and/or inserting section 24, along which the respective film element 2 can be fed starting from a loading position 25 into the gripper 4.

[0123] The feed and/or insertion device 23 is also characterized by at least one movable heating unit 26 for heating the respective film element 2 outside the frame part 3. The movable heating unit 26 has two heating devices 27 and 28, which can be moved along with the film element 2 to be introduced in the direction of the cutting room 8.

[0124] Furthermore, the device 1 has a control device 30 comprising a data interface for motorized movement of the grippers 4 in their respective working positions 31 (numbered here only as an example, see also FIGS. 2 to 4). The working position 31 shown here characterizes, purely by way of example, an end position (not numbered again) of a gripper 4 next to a sealing device 32 (see FIGS. 3 and 4) for sealing a vacuum room 33 (see FIGS. 3 and 4) or besides another one not explicitly here shown and numbered component of the laminating tool 5.

[0125] An alternative clamping device is shown in FIG. 2, where a teaching station 35 for teaching designated working positions 31 for grippers 4 for gripping a film element 2 is shown. It goes without saying that dummy grippers can also be used in such a teaching station 35, since no real lamination processes take place at the teaching station 35.

[0126] The teaching station 35 has a frame 36, by means of which the grippers 4 are mounted on longitudinal cross members 37 and cross members 38 of a frame part 39 in a multi-axially movable manner.

[0127] The frame part 39 or the frame 36 convert a simulation room 40 accessible from above and below, in which the grippers 36 can be guided, the simulation room 40 corresponding to the lamination room 8 of the device 1.

[0128] The teaching station 35 has a control device 30 for controlling the grippers 4, this control device also having a data interface (likewise not shown here) in the sense of the invention.

[0129] Using the teaching station 35, the grippers 4 and in particular the control device 30 can be taught on designated working positions 31, for this purpose the grippers along trajectories 45 (numbered only as an example, cf. also FIGS. 3 and 4) to the respectively designated working positions 31 can be performed. Subsequently, the designated working positions 31, but also the movement paths 45 are stored by the control device 30 and are available as a data record for a device 1 for laminating a film element 2 on a carrier part 17.

[0130] It goes without saying that 35 different teaching methods can be carried out both by means of the device 1 and by means of the teaching station 35.

[0131] In this case, the grippers 4 can be guided at least partially individually or in combination into each designated working position 31.

[0132] Cumulatively or alternatively, the grippers 4 can be guided by means of a manually operated control device 46 by motor, at least in part individually or in combination, into designated working positions 31.

[0133] For this purpose, both the device 1 and the teaching station 35 each have a corresponding redundant control device 46, which in this embodiment is designed as a mobile input device 47. This allows an operator 48 (only shown in FIG. 1) move freely on the device 1 or the teaching station 35 while he manually guides the gripper 4.

[0134] More precisely, the input device 47 is a handheld device (not again with reference number) with a joystick control 50, so that the operator 4 grips the gripper 4 with the aid of drive motors (not numbered), the gripper 4 can be very precisely manually lead into the respective working positions 31.

[0135] Cumulatively or alternatively, the grippers 4 can be guided at least in part individually or in combination by means of individual spatial coordinates into designated working positions 31, designated intermediate positions and/or designated end positions.

[0136] Cumulatively or alternatively, the grippers 4 can be guided by CAD data of the carrier part 17 and/or the film element 2, at least in part, individually or in combination by motor into respectively designed working positions 31, designated intermediate positions and/or designated end positions. Corresponding CAD data can be processed by means of the data interface of the control device in the sense of the invention.

[0137] According to the representations according to FIGS. 3 and 4, a gripper 4 is shown as an example in its starting position 54, which, in the sense of the present invention, is guided along the movement path 45 into a designated working position 31 and placed or arranged there at least temporarily.

[0138] FIG. 3 shows both the horizontal forward movement 55 (x-axis) and a horizontal sideways movement 56 (y-axis) of the gripper 4 along the movement path 45 and into the designated working position 31, which in a later real lamination process an end position of the gripper 4.

[0139] FIG. 4 also shows the horizontal forward movement 55 (x-axis) as well as a vertical downward movement 57 (z-axis) of the gripper 4 along the movement path 45 and into the designated working position 31.

[0140] According to the illustration according to FIG. 5, a flow chart 60 is also exemplarily illustrated with a possible process sequence for teaching designated working positions 31 for grippers 4 of the device 1.

[0141] In a first method step 61, the grippers 4 are in their respective starting position 54, which can be predetermined or random.

[0142] In a second method step 62, drive motors or the like of the grippers 4 are released, so that the grippers 4 are free to move and can be guided in the sense of the invention.

[0143] In a third method step 63, grippers 4 are preferably guided individually and manually into their designated working positions 31.

[0144] In a fourth method step 64, these designated working positions 31 are detected and stored by the control device 30. The control device 30 has now been taught in particular.

[0145] In a fifth method step 65, the grippers 4 taught in this way are moved back from their designated working positions 31, for example into their respective starting position 54.

[0146] In a sixth process step 66A, the actual lamination process is started in real life without a previous test run. Or in an alternative sixth method step 66B, the taught grippers 4 first run through a test run in the device 1 with regard to a real laminating process.

[0147] In a seventh method step 67, the actual lamination process can actually be started after a successful test run.

[0148] The laminating device 1 or teaching station 35 shown here by way of example, as well as the exemplary flow chart 60 can, with suitable adaptation, implement all of the design and process variants described here, where the description of the figures described in detail in this regard is dispensed with in order to avoid repetition.

[0149] It goes without saying that the exemplary embodiments explained above are merely first embodiments of the invention. In this respect, these examples do not limit the invention.

[0150] At this point, it should again be explicitly pointed out that features of the solutions described above or in the claims and/or figures can also be combined, if appropriate, in order to be able to implement or achieve the described or further features, effects and advantages in a correspondingly cumulative manner.

[0151] All the features disclosed in the application documents are claimed as essential to the invention, provided that they are new to the prior art, individually or in combination with one another.